Ms Derville Rowland:

We have a number of regulatory powers that are effective with respect to addressing wrongdoing. One of those procedures is a statutory procedure, the administrative sanctions procedure, which I believe was brought into force in 2004. It is a civil scheme and it requires the Central Bank to prove that a prescribed contravention, which is a list of breaches of regulatory matters that are enumerated at the back of that piece of legislation, have been committed by the regulated entity. That is a prerequisite for proving any matter. As a second step, one would then go on to prove, under the legal construct, that individuals have participated in the breach that has been committed by the regulated entity. The legal construct that has to be followed, therefore, is that the matter must be proved first against the regulated entity and then one goes on to demonstrate the participation of an individual in that. The Central Bank has taken action previously to disqualify individuals pursuant to the administrative sanctions scheme and has referred a number of individuals to inquiry in those regards.

Separately, we have fitness and probity powers that are very important and effective where we challenge individuals in senior roles as they make applications for roles of responsibility in the Central Bank. We have used those powers to large effect. Having refused individuals we often see that individuals withdraw because they prefer to do that rather than be subject to the Central Bank challenge. Pursuant to that scheme, people who are in senior roles in offices in the regulated community have been disqualified and prohibited; it is a prohibition scheme under the fitness and probity powers. We have those powers also and, as I have said, we have statutory obligations under section 33AK of the Central Bank Act of 1942 to make regulatory reports of suspicions of criminal offences to other agencies, An Garda Síochána and others, where we have suspicion of criminal offences. It is for those agencies then to determine their own courses of action.